The Terms of Forever
by Rhiannon A. Christy
Summary: During the winter festival Remus realizes how blind he has been, though maybe he did need a little push.


Hermione turned over in bed, her body slowly waking up to the sounds of people in the hall. She cursed silently at herself for forgetting a privacy charm the night before, but she figured even if she had it would have been a rubbish one. Firewhisky and magic didn't mix at the best of times.

She stretched her arms out above her head, her fingers skimming along the old headboard. She could feel the scars in the wood, like visual evidence of the item's life. They reminded her of her own scars, raised and pink, covering her entire body. One could read them like a book, from the faint rough patches on her knees done as a child to the horrific gashes given to her during the war.

The war… it had been over for several years now. Their world had been torn apart and slowly put back together. Not many people talked of it anymore, not like they had in the first days after the dust settled. But you could still see the evidence all around you. The hollow eyes of a grieving mother, the skittishness of an old warrior, and the sad smile of the widower.

Hermione huffed as a rather loud pounding came at the door, breaking her from her thoughts. A chuckle rumbled in her throat at the voice coming from the other side.

"Wake up, Auntie! Daddy said we couldn't get breakfast until you woke up, and I'm HUUUUUNGGGGRRRRRYYYYYY!"

Teddy Lupin. She shook her head but slid out of bed all the same. If there was one thing no one needed that day, it was a cranky little boy. She pulled on a robe and trudged her way to the door. It wasn't as easy as it had been when she was younger, moving around. She was too young to feel like her bones and joints had rusted together, but the war had left her with more than just cuts and bruises.

As she opened the door a little whirlwind of orange hair blew past her and onto her bed. Teddy had taken to changing his hair every morning to match his clothes, and today he looked rather like a child shaped pumpkin.

"I'm sorry Hermione, he slipped out of our room while I was distracted."

Hermione felt a flutter in her chest at the sound of Remus' voice beside her, but she ignored it. The stupid feeling had been showing up whenever the older man was around, and it really wasn't something she wanted to examine. Merlin, the man was still grieving his late wife!

"No need to worry, I needed to be getting up anyway." She smiled at the way Remus looked over at his son. The boy was currently jumping on the bed, his bright hair flapping around him wildly. No doubt it would stick up everywhere all day with no hope of behaving.

Since the end of the war Remus had taken to spending as much time as he could with the child. Molly had worried that he would retreat into himself, leaving the child to another's care. But there had barely been a day when he wasn't by his son's side. Hermione knew it was partly his way of dealing with Tonks' death, and a reassurance that Teddy was alive. But mostly she believed he was just a wonderful father.

"Still…" Remus took a few steps into the room, stopping a moment before turning back around. "I want to thank you, for coming this weekend I mean. Teddy has been looking forward to it, in fact it is all he has been able to talk about lately."

Hermione reached out to pat his arm, though a little awkwardly. This had been happening way too often lately, she used to be so comfortable around him. But since the past spring when she started working with him, things had gotten… strange.

"I'm happy to be here. Truly." She let her hand drop to her side. "I have to admit, I'm kind of excited myself. Harry and Ginny went last year and loved it."

"Hmmm, yeah, it seems like it might become a bit of a tradition." He rolled his eyes when a thump came from behind him followed by a soft "oof" and "I'm alright."

"After everything I think it is a good thing." She looked away from Remus just in time to notice Teddy rushing her way. She caught him up in her arms when he jumped at her, laughing at the silliness of the boy. He was one of the good things left in this world, she thought. He was so carefree and happy all the time, and it made her wonder if she had ever been like that.

"I'm hungry, Auntie!" Teddy slid down to the floor, gathering up Hermione's hand in his as he did so. He barely managed to move her a step before his father had grasped him by the waist and hauled him up under his arm. "DADDY!"

"We should let your Aunt get dressed." He shook his head at the squirming boy before looking back to the woman before him. "We'll be down in the dining room when you are ready."

Hermione swallowed down the nervous fluttering in her chest as she watched Remus march down the hall with his son. Teddy continued to squirm under his arm, but his father wouldn't let go. He only chuckled when the boy let out a huff of annoyance and ruffled his hair. When she could no longer see them, she stepped back and closed the door. She needed to get ready.

* * *

The world around them was alive with laughter and music. Children ran from one side of the alley to the next, giggling as they snacked on sweet treats. Remus' own child was happily skipping between him and Hermione, making comments about what they should do that day. The whole of Diagon Alley was brimming with activity and it seemed that Teddy planned to experience it all.

After the war the Wizarding world was left with little. So many people had died, businesses destroyed, and no one seemed to know what to do. But if their people where one thing, it was resourceful. The winter a year later, many of the shop owners in Diagon Alley began to set up booths outside their stores selling specialty items and homemade treats. The next year saw traveling witches and wizards pitching up booths alongside the shop owners, and then came the performers and so on and so forth. Now six winters after the end of the war it had become a tradition; the Diagon Alley Winter Festival.

This was the first year that he had attended, having felt no desire beforehand to be out in public. But Teddy had heard his godfather talking about it a month ago and had decided that they had to go. In fact, the boy had decided that not only were they going, but Hermione was as well. He had tried to explain that Aunt Hermione was a busy woman, but he refused to hear a word of it. At one of Molly's dinners a couple of weeks ago, Teddy had taken the matter into his own hands. He had marched up to the young woman, put his hands on his hips and after glaring at her declared that she would be going with them to the festival.

Remus had been shocked, and a little embarrassed. Things around Hermione had gotten… complicated lately. He had begun a few months before working alongside her at the Ministry. They had already been friends, but that friendship had taken an unusual turn, at least for Remus, when he began to feel things he knew he shouldn't. He missed his wife but knew that no matter what he did she was never coming back. He had accepted that a long time ago. He still loved his Dora and knew he always would. But he also knew that it was time to move on. He just hadn't expected it to be with a former student.

Day by day, week after week had found his heart moving closer to Hermione. It wasn't just how smart she was, or how strong, or even that he found her pretty… though he did, very much so. It was the way she was around Teddy. He had made that boy his whole world, and it did funny things to him seeing how she included him in her life. So, his feelings for the woman had only grown when she had laughed at Teddy's pronouncement, declaring that she would love nothing better in the world than to join them.

He looked over to her now; one wool encased hand held tightly to Teddy's mittened one while the other pointed out things to the little boy. He felt his heart clench and his stomach churn until he thought he might be sick. He hadn't felt this rush of sweet illness since he was a child back in Hogwarts hoping to convince his crush to join him for Hogsmead weekend. Hermione made him feel young, but while he delighted in that, he knew that he needed something more if he were to consider ever confessing his feelings.

Unlike that carefree child years ago, he had things to consider beyond himself. He had a son, and whatever involved him, involved Teddy as well. He couldn't risk his son becoming attached to someone and things not working out. He needed someone that was in it for the long-haul; someone willing to commit to forever.

A gentle 'oh' fell from Hermione's lips, and he watched as she ran with Teddy in hand to a small stall down the way. He followed at a leisurely pace, just enjoying the laughter that erupted from both as they ran. Snow covered everything, painting Diagon Alley in strokes of white. Hermione's hair was liberally dotted with the stuff, and he couldn't help but admire it and wonder at how they looked like crystals.

When he reached them, Hermione had already purchased a treat for the both of them. Steam rose from the sticky pastry, and he found himself envious of the way her lips closed around the sweet. She had removed her gloves so not to cover them with the tacky syrup and was pinching off small bites to place on her tongue. His mouth grew dry and he couldn't speak. These were not thoughts he needed to have while standing in the middle of public. Hermione pinched off a rather large piece, and without a word lifted it to his own lips. He opened up and allowed her to set it inside, her mouth stretching into a wide grin when he began to chew.

"I haven't had one of these in years. My parents used to be really strict about the amount of sugar I had, but every Christmas when I was a child I was allowed to have one of these. The night before I would go to bed thinking about my special treat." She blushed a bit as she looked down at the simple pastry. "It is funny how something so simple is just that much more enjoyable because it is rare."

Remus nodded his head but said nothing.

Time moved slowly, and yet it flew by as the day wore on. After the pastry they had enjoyed steaming cups of cider and mulled pumpkin juice. They had bought silly trinkets from various stalls, and several new handmade toys for Teddy. Hermione had found a carving of a wolf and cub wrapped protectively around a woman and had stuffed it into his hands after paying for it. She hadn't said anything, but his heart jumped at the thought of what it could mean.

As the day wore down they had stepped up to a stall set aside from the others. It had a canopy and curtains of the deepest blue, and with the snow the fabric looked like the night sky. Along the table were set various flowers, obviously spelled to remain fresh this far into the year.

Hermione ran her finger along a single red rose. The blossom was larger than her hand and fully bloomed.

"Exquisite, is it not?" An older woman slipped from behind a curtain, her long grey hair braided and draped over her shoulders like a scarf. She wore a kind smile on her lined face, but there was something in her green eyes that spoke of years of mischief. "You should give it a smell, go on, Dear."

Hermione reached out as though to pick the bloom up, but stopped before she could wrap her fingers around the stem.

"No, thank you, I was just looking." She turned, not looking at Remus and walked back towards the entrance. He was puzzled as he watched her go. What about the rose could have upset her?

"Poor dear, sometimes it is ourselves we fear the most. Wouldn't you say?"

Remus blinked at the old woman, unsure of what she was talking about. He had decided to ignore the question and run after Hermione when Teddy touched the petal of another flower and he watched as the bloom changed color.

"What…"

"They are Soul Blossoms. A rarity anymore, most people have forgotten the delightful fancy that the Victorians had cultivated." She picked up a plain white flower, her finger dusting across the edge of one petal. Instantly it changed color, the whole thing now a vibrant pink. "Useful things, these. We tend to ignore what our hearts are telling us, but the magic inside these never lie. Pick a flower, and your touch will change it to your soul's desire."

Slowly he reached out, his finger just passing over the petal of a white rose. The moment his skin made contact the whole thing flushed with color; red and purple trying to vie for dominance. He looked away and back at the woman. She smiled widely.

"Love and enchantment. You truly are a lucky wizard." Not waiting for instructions, she gathered both the roses he and Hermione had touched and the small bundles of moss and sorrel that Teddy had. She charmed them to stand on their own atop a silver platform and placed a bell-jar over them.

She stood looking at them, her brows furrowed as she inspected every inch of the glass. With a small 'aha!' she eased up the jar a finger's width, twirled her wand in the air, and watched with a wide smile as a few of the falling snowflakes circled around the flowers. When she was finished it reminded Remus very much like a muggle snow-globe.

She placed the whole thing inside a charmed box, handing it over to a silent Remus. She patted his hand like an old grandmother, but her eyes had traveled down to where Hermione had taken off moments before.

"You better hurry. Love that comes around once is a special thing, but love that comes twice… well, that is a rare thing." She stepped away from him, and for just a moment Remus thought her features looked eerily familiar.

He shook the thoughts off, his eyes blinking rapidly to clear them. When he finally focused them again the stall and all the flowers, save the ones in his arms, were gone. Teddy stood beside him, one hand gathered in his coat, his youthful face spread into a grin.

At that moment he thought about life after the war, about those he considered family. He had been worried about letting Hermione into his life as well as his heart because of his son. But what he had been too blind to see was that she was already there. There was no need to fear her leaving, the terms of forever had already been laid out long ago, and Hermione had silently accepted them. Even if he had been too stupid to realize.

He reached down and took Teddy's hand, the box with the flowers held tightly with his other arm. He could see Hermione further down the alley, absently looking over some quills. He walked slowly through the snow beside his son, each step bringing them closer and closer to home.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** So, it has been a long time since I've posted. Sadly, work and life has been a pain lately. Anyway, I've been getting back into Harry Potter lately, and decided that I would actually write for the fandom instead of just read.

I'm mostly a Hermione/Snape shipper, but Hermione/Remus is so close that really I would say I have two OTPs for this fandom.  
Now, I also want to say that it wasn't until I started writing this that I realized that a charmed rose in a bell-jar is a bit too Beauty and the Beast, but that is not where I got the idea. I'm actually not that fond of that fairytail. But I just thought this would be a cool idea. And I wanted to write something involving snow as we have been getting some of it here.

And for those that wish to know, according to my flower dictionary red roses are for love, purple for enchantment, moss for maternal love, and sorrel for parental protection. At least that is what mine says.

I might do more for this fandom, but it all depends on how things go with work and life.

 **Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.**


End file.
